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Highlights from LEAD North 2025

/ May 19th 2025
Industry News

After a fantastic debut, we brought LEAD North back to Manchester on 14 May 2025, convening leaders from brands, agencies and media owners across the North of England for a day of insight, innovation and impact.

This year’s theme, Driving Growth and Value set the stage for the launch of our brand new report, Advertising Pays 2025, packed with fresh research, data and insights showcasing advertising’s vital role in the UK economy.

 

Other key sessions included:

Leader of Manchester City Council, Cllr. Bev Craig gave a keynote on the opportunities and challenges facing the advertising industry in Manchester today.

The View from the North: A panel of Northern-based industry journalists discussed key areas including misinformation and the importance of educating young people about news on social media.

Scaling up: How Media Owners Can Drive SME Growth: This panel  highlighted the number of resources and support that exists for SMEs, as well as initiatives to support businesses of all sizes

The North: A Global Powerhouse of Creativity: Industry leaders from Dentsu Creative, Drummond Central, PHD Manchester and Ingenuity+ discussed the scale of Northern talent and the need to stop referring to Northern agencies as ‘regional’.

The Influencer Effect: Trust, Creativity & Brand Success: Social media star Em Wallbank spoke in a lively discussion with our Communications Director Matt Bourn about what it takes to build a trusted relationship between creators and brands.

Opening Doors: Nurturing Talent and Driving Social Mobility: Keynote speaker, giffgaff CEO Ash Schofield shared his lessons in leadership and the importance of leaving a lasting legacy. In a Q&A with our Commercial Director and Talent & Inclusion Lead Sharon Lloyd Barnes, he highlighted the importance of the All In Census results, and initiatives such as ‘We Are Here‘ which bring young people and brands together.

Industry legend, Robin Wight CVO, CBE, finished the day on a high with the incredible story of how the media industry in Manchester saved the iconic Salford Lads & Girls Club, and the work of the Ideas Foundation, his charity which nurtures talent from disadvantaged backgrounds.

All sessions will be shortly available to view on our YouTube channel here

The 160+ attendees also enjoyed networking drinks on the theatre terrace.

A big thank you to our partners Ozone and Digital Cinema Media for making the day possible.

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